A post-mortem found that the 49-year-old died after hanging herself in her Manhattan apartment on Monday.

The Rolling Stones cancelled their seven-date tour of Australia and New Zealand after the celebrity stylist's death.

Members of the the band have offered their support to lead singer Sir Mick, who had been Ms Scott's companion since 2001.

Keith Richards said in a statement that "no one saw this coming" and that Sir Mick has "always been my soul brother and we love him".

"We're thick as thieves and we're all feeling for the man," he added.

The Stones' drummer Charlie Watts said their "first thought is to support Mick at this awful time". Ronnie Wood echoed Watts' statement, adding: "we intend to be back out on that stage as soon as we can."

Writing on Facebook, Sir Mick called Scott his "lover and best friend" and said he was struggling to understand why she might have taken her own life.

"We spent many wonderful years together and had made a great life for ourselves. She had great presence and her talent was much admired, not least by me," wrote Sir Mick.

But fo llowing news of her death, it emerged her eponymous fashion label had been experiencing financial problems. Last month the designer cancelled her London Fashion Week show, citing production delays.

Accounts filed by Scott's LS Fashion Ltd in London show the company had liabilities that exceeded assets by £3.5 million as of December 31, 2012.

Scott, who was said to be 6ft 4in tall and towered at least half a foot over her boyfriend, became well-known in Britain after she got together with Sir Mick.

She designed stage outfits for notable headline performances by the band at Glastonbury Festival and Hyde Park in recent years.

The Stones announced they were "deeply sorry and disappointed" to pull out of the six Australian shows, which should have begun in Perth, and one show in New Zealand, but hoped fans would understand.

Scott was originally called Luann Bambrough, and brought up as a Mormon in Utah, but changed her name to launch her modelling career in her teens.

She worked in Paris for a number of years, with the likes of Thierry Mugler and Karl Lagerfeld, then returned to the US as a stylist.

She was a wardrobe consultant for films such as Eyes Wide Shut and Ocean's Thirteen.

Scott launched her fashion line in 2006, and she has also designed for Banana Republic.

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